1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,880 Welcome to our podcast, Band BFFs. 2 00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:13,400 The podcast where we make your music selection less complicated. 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:18,400 On today's episode, we will be discussing La Madre de Los Gatos by Brian Beck. 4 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:22,320 Cheers to starting the conversation. 5 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:26,120 La Madre is a great little Spanish style piece. 6 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:28,460 It's about three minutes in length. 7 00:00:28,460 --> 00:00:34,000 It does have split clarinet parts, alto, trumpet, and trombone, but they're only split into 8 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:35,320 two parts. 9 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:40,120 You need a minimum of five percussion on this and you might have to tweak the percussion 10 00:00:40,120 --> 00:00:42,600 two part if you only have five percussionists. 11 00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:44,760 Six percussionists is better. 12 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:50,240 All of the percussion parts in this are pretty important to add to the style. 13 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:57,860 It is in three, four, and in the key of concert E flat, and it's about three minutes in length. 14 00:00:57,860 --> 00:01:00,920 So that's all the big major stats for La Madre. 15 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:05,680 It's also about on the Texas PML, it's a grade three. 16 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:13,480 So definitely appropriate for a middle school ensemble or a non-varsity, seven non-varsity 17 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:14,480 high school. 18 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:15,480 Yes. 19 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:18,520 This piece is so fun and the kids love it too. 20 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:23,240 At the middle school level, we kind of have to start it a little bit slower and work our 21 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:24,240 way up. 22 00:01:24,240 --> 00:01:28,280 I imagine a high school could probably play it pretty close to tempo pretty quick. 23 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:34,120 The piece overall starts off at 132 and then it goes even faster in the middle. 24 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:40,000 So it does require some musical skills where the kids can tongue quicker, can count quicker, 25 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:44,880 can move their fingers a little bit quicker, especially in the woodwind instruments. 26 00:01:44,880 --> 00:01:47,160 But anyway, percussion is very important. 27 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:51,920 There's big chimes, there's big castanets, maracas, timpani. 28 00:01:51,920 --> 00:01:54,940 All of those parts are featured and very important. 29 00:01:54,940 --> 00:02:00,920 The whole piece starts off with a little opening from first trumpet, flute, oboe, first clarinet 30 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:02,880 and saxophones together. 31 00:02:02,880 --> 00:02:07,480 And I like the way that Mr. Beck colors the music with sax and clarinet a lot throughout 32 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:11,480 this piece, as well as of course trumpet since it's Spanish style. 33 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:16,080 The low brass get to come in with a little response to the opening and then we get back 34 00:02:16,080 --> 00:02:17,760 to the same people doing the same little... 35 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:22,960 Low, lows, lows, lows, lows, lows, lows, lows, lows. 36 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:26,680 Then we start our little Spanish groove. 37 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:31,440 Low brass love it because it's not hard to count, but it's fun and it kind of sounds 38 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:35,460 a little like umpah-y so they like to like dance to it and stuff. 39 00:02:35,460 --> 00:02:40,220 This ostinato continues a lot throughout this piece. 40 00:02:40,220 --> 00:02:44,240 And I think we talk about, and when I've played this with my bands, we talk about beat three 41 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:47,940 leading to beat, beat three leading to beat one. 42 00:02:47,940 --> 00:02:53,680 So giving just a little bit more emphasis on beat three, one and three, one and three, 43 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:59,480 one and three, just to help kind of give that a little bit more forward momentum. 44 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:04,400 The tuba line and the bass clarinet line are also really important and they do not mimic 45 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:07,080 the trombone and euphonium line. 46 00:03:07,080 --> 00:03:13,480 So that is pretty neat, but it's just something different for this mark, or this Spanish style 47 00:03:13,480 --> 00:03:14,480 song. 48 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:18,600 The altos and the flutes and oboe have the melody at eight, at nine. 49 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:22,040 And again, the altos get to be pretty important. 50 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:26,640 Lots of leading through, like Laura just said, three leads to one, teaching the students 51 00:03:26,640 --> 00:03:32,040 that there's so many opportunities for phrasing on this piece. 52 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,200 You know, building it up for two, getting softer for two. 53 00:03:35,200 --> 00:03:39,880 Like it's a very lyrical piece, even though it's not. 54 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:44,600 It's just so beautiful because it's playing lyrically on top of the ostinato underneath 55 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:45,840 with the low brass. 56 00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:49,920 There are a lot of rhythms in here where you have an eighth note and two sixteenths or 57 00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:52,680 two sixteenths coming in after an eighth rest. 58 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:58,240 The sixteenths are often slurred and it's really important for clarity of articulation 59 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:03,420 to make sure that those are tongued or that we don't have, you know, sometimes younger 60 00:04:03,420 --> 00:04:09,080 players might do air starts instead of starting with the tongue and all of that just to match 61 00:04:09,080 --> 00:04:12,760 clarity needs to be articulated. 62 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:14,200 Ta, ta. 63 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:19,960 And even before you get there, I think it's a good idea to take all the slurs out so that 64 00:04:19,960 --> 00:04:22,240 you can line it up later on in the piece. 65 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:26,040 Laura and I were talking about, I remember my flutes had trouble with one spot and so 66 00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:31,120 we just took all the slurs out to make sure that they can keep everything really even. 67 00:04:31,120 --> 00:04:33,720 So that's another just like practice strategy. 68 00:04:33,720 --> 00:04:38,440 At 13, the clarinets get to take over the melody along with tenor sax and they get to 69 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:42,160 play low down in the shalammo register, which is always really fun. 70 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:43,160 I love this part. 71 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:45,120 Yeah, it sounds really pretty. 72 00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:49,120 You know, one of the tricks is making sure that like your low brass don't ever get too 73 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:51,360 loud over the melody. 74 00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:56,680 You still have the ostinato going in horn and sax in this moment, but then like the 75 00:04:56,680 --> 00:05:01,940 low brass have like a dotted half note getting stronger and then getting softer again. 76 00:05:01,940 --> 00:05:06,400 And it's really important that they don't go above and beyond what the melody is. 77 00:05:06,400 --> 00:05:10,420 And so just that balancing, you know, that's always important to think about. 78 00:05:10,420 --> 00:05:13,720 But this one has a lot of different little layers to think about. 79 00:05:13,720 --> 00:05:18,560 This snare part is pretty active throughout this, but it's kind of in along with what 80 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:21,920 Katie's saying about the low brass part, it's important that your snare player be able to 81 00:05:21,920 --> 00:05:24,240 play with a lot of control and softer dynamics. 82 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:25,240 Absolutely. 83 00:05:25,240 --> 00:05:29,760 Because it's really easy with the way that the part is written for them to overbalance 84 00:05:29,760 --> 00:05:33,080 the percussion section and then the ensemble as well. 85 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:37,360 So they need to they need to be a pretty strong player that can play controlled softly. 86 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:38,360 Yep. 87 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:42,680 In response to the clarinet melody here at 13, the flutes and oboes have this cute little 88 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:48,640 oney and it's just really cute and they do it again in like four measures, but it's just 89 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:50,120 adorably written. 90 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:51,200 It's not supposed to be loud. 91 00:05:51,200 --> 00:05:53,760 It's just like a little fun effect. 92 00:05:53,760 --> 00:05:58,980 Then the lows do get to get a little bit stronger, kind of take over for a second. 93 00:05:58,980 --> 00:06:04,080 Then it goes back to the clarinets with their little moment. 94 00:06:04,080 --> 00:06:07,720 In this little section while the clarinets are doing this cool thing down low, there 95 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:12,680 are a couple of places in here where it's often slurred through here and Katie's already 96 00:06:12,680 --> 00:06:17,680 referenced the fact that it is like this lyrical style over the rhythmic ostinato. 97 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:21,840 Younger players can clip the ends of those slurs, especially when we see little two note 98 00:06:21,840 --> 00:06:27,440 slurs, ti-ya, ti-ya, ti-ya, and it's really important that they follow through on that 99 00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:28,640 and not clip that. 100 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:31,040 Make it as lyrical sounding as possible. 101 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:33,200 Yes, absolutely. 102 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:38,880 And then we keep going with the clarinet melody with the little flute and oboe back and forth 103 00:06:38,880 --> 00:06:40,400 into measure 23. 104 00:06:40,400 --> 00:06:44,800 Then the whole band leads up and we have three accented quarter notes here. 105 00:06:44,800 --> 00:06:50,640 One, two, three, one, then the trumpet, flute, and oboe come down into the next measure, 106 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:52,520 which is 25. 107 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:58,920 That part right there sometimes can sound really immature in younger bands or bands 108 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:03,640 that haven't spent enough time on it because the trumpets have to come in on an upper E 109 00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:09,080 and the flutes are on a D and oboe too and that's just not a great tuning note on any 110 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:10,120 of those instruments. 111 00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:16,740 So spending time isolating that little line, maybe find one or two players per section 112 00:07:16,740 --> 00:07:21,640 that can actually play it in tune with a good sound and accuracy. 113 00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:24,880 Things worse than a trumpet trying to come in on the right partial and then they don't 114 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:25,880 and it takes away. 115 00:07:25,880 --> 00:07:29,520 Or trying to squeeze that note out and sounding really tense. 116 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:31,480 Because there's nothing else going on there. 117 00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:34,240 So that part has to be set. 118 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:40,720 Then at 25 we land and the whole band, except for clarinet and sax, has this little dotted 119 00:07:40,720 --> 00:07:48,840 half note leading up one, two, three, one, two, three, one, and one, and one. 120 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:50,200 It's so fun. 121 00:07:50,200 --> 00:07:55,640 And they get to just crescendo and make those dotted quarter notes be real accented and 122 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:57,280 firm style. 123 00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:04,000 And then all underneath them you've got clarinet and sax playing all eighth notes essentially 124 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:06,560 but they're not all playing all eighth notes all the time. 125 00:08:06,560 --> 00:08:07,560 It sounds really cool. 126 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:09,640 It's written really well. 127 00:08:09,640 --> 00:08:13,120 It sounds active and fun and the kids like this little moment and they get to do the 128 00:08:13,120 --> 00:08:15,080 crescendo decrescendo too. 129 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:20,080 And then there is a pickup note into measure 31 where the whole band is going to come in 130 00:08:20,080 --> 00:08:21,240 stronger. 131 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:26,620 So we've stopped at piano and then everybody comes in mezzo forte. 132 00:08:26,620 --> 00:08:29,080 It's meant to be like a big moment. 133 00:08:29,080 --> 00:08:30,680 We want to hear a difference here for sure. 134 00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:31,680 Yep. 135 00:08:31,680 --> 00:08:38,480 And then at 31 the flute and the trumpet and the clarinet and alto one have the melody. 136 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:41,080 Then we got the rhythmic ostinato again underneath. 137 00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:42,380 But everybody's in here. 138 00:08:42,380 --> 00:08:46,960 This is the first really big full moment. 139 00:08:46,960 --> 00:08:52,220 And you can decide what works for your band at 34. 140 00:08:52,220 --> 00:08:58,640 There is a moment for a breath mark in the melody if you want to take it or you can have 141 00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:03,320 the kids push through and make it sound more like an eight measure phrase which is what 142 00:09:03,320 --> 00:09:05,880 I personally prefer which is what I did too. 143 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:12,280 So when I played this I thought it sounded more elongated and lyrical taking my first 144 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:16,080 breath with the melody at 38 instead of 34. 145 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:18,440 So the way you even added a crescendo. 146 00:09:18,440 --> 00:09:19,440 Yes. 147 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:20,440 Yep. 148 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:23,960 And the way you have to do that is playing out the breath marks for the kids so that 149 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:26,440 way they're not like well that's where it feels good to take a breath. 150 00:09:26,440 --> 00:09:27,440 I mean you're right. 151 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:28,440 You're not wrong. 152 00:09:28,440 --> 00:09:31,960 So you have to think about okay I'm going to have my flute players they're going to 153 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:36,320 sneak a breath and measure 35 between beats two and three and then another flute player 154 00:09:36,320 --> 00:09:38,920 is going to breathe after beat one and 36. 155 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:44,680 So going through and either marking that pre marking that for the kids or saying you know 156 00:09:44,680 --> 00:09:49,320 in sectionals your you for your kids are going to play your be. 157 00:09:49,320 --> 00:09:53,200 You for kids are going to breathe in 35 you for going to breathe in 36 or whatever it 158 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:54,320 might be. 159 00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:58,840 But planning out those breath marks will help the students so that way they're not just 160 00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:04,640 relying upon their like natural instinct to take a breath every four measures. 161 00:10:04,640 --> 00:10:11,360 Then we're going to just continue that melody line going into measure 42. 162 00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:12,760 We're all leading up again. 163 00:10:12,760 --> 00:10:13,760 I'm sorry. 164 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:19,360 This is the same melody and type of style that the clarinets had earlier. 165 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:23,480 So we're copy pasting all those stylistic things we talked about with the clarinets 166 00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:27,400 not clipping the ends of the slurs making it sound as lyrical as possible. 167 00:10:27,400 --> 00:10:30,400 It needs to be exactly the same here. 168 00:10:30,400 --> 00:10:35,640 And then we end the same way with the one two three one then the trumpet and oboe. 169 00:10:35,640 --> 00:10:38,200 They have that same little line coming down. 170 00:10:38,200 --> 00:10:40,440 So again find your best ones. 171 00:10:40,440 --> 00:10:42,640 The whole band is piano at 43. 172 00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:47,520 We get that same moment again where the saxes and the clarinets get this cool little eighth 173 00:10:47,520 --> 00:10:50,800 note thing and the band is leading up again and getting softer. 174 00:10:50,800 --> 00:10:52,800 There's a lot of repetition in this piece. 175 00:10:52,800 --> 00:10:57,200 So it's one of the things that is nice even though it has some challenging moments to 176 00:10:57,200 --> 00:11:00,320 teach and they're really good teaching opportunities. 177 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:06,600 Once you've taught a chunk that you can you can essentially copy paste to other sections 178 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:07,600 of the piece. 179 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:15,320 So it does make for I think it makes it a little bit easier to teach because of that. 180 00:11:15,320 --> 00:11:19,040 Now we have a new section pickups into 49. 181 00:11:19,040 --> 00:11:22,800 Everybody is forte now and style change and a big style change. 182 00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:24,400 Now we're all accented. 183 00:11:24,400 --> 00:11:27,640 There are not a lot of slurs happening. 184 00:11:27,640 --> 00:11:32,080 Everybody is forte the low brass get the melody for the first time and low reads. 185 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:34,440 So they're really excited for that always. 186 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:39,560 The trumpets have it first actually so trumpets go three and one two and three and lows come 187 00:11:39,560 --> 00:11:42,280 in two three one two and three. 188 00:11:42,280 --> 00:11:45,440 So they're kind of like in a conversation here. 189 00:11:45,440 --> 00:11:52,440 Then above that flute oboe clarinet have this cute little one and trill one and trill and 190 00:11:52,440 --> 00:11:57,680 I did not let all of my kids play because it's an it's a G trill above the staff for 191 00:11:57,680 --> 00:11:58,920 the flutes. 192 00:11:58,920 --> 00:12:01,860 It's very high and it can be too much. 193 00:12:01,860 --> 00:12:05,700 You know we're not I don't want to take away from the low brass and the trumpets here. 194 00:12:05,700 --> 00:12:11,640 So I think what I did is I had one kid play the upper G trill and I had everybody else 195 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:15,640 just play a G in the staff and not trill. 196 00:12:15,640 --> 00:12:19,840 And I only had probably one oboe at the time so that worked out and even the first clarinet 197 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:26,200 is on a high A high A to B flat trill and I think the clarinet color I mean I agree 198 00:12:26,200 --> 00:12:30,120 completely with Katie I like the idea of one or two flute players and taking the other 199 00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:34,600 flute players down since it's just in the first clarinet part the clarinet part is really 200 00:12:34,600 --> 00:12:38,240 what I think kind of adds that the color combination. 201 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:42,720 So having you know your first clarinets if you just have two first clarinets or three 202 00:12:42,720 --> 00:12:47,200 first clarinets if you're limiting what you're doing in the flute I think that you'll get 203 00:12:47,200 --> 00:12:51,520 the I think that you'll get the sound and the color you're looking for without covering 204 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:54,280 up what's happening the most important stuff that's happening in the brasses. 205 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:59,520 Yeah they just need to be the kings here and then trumpets have the melody with saxes at 206 00:12:59,520 --> 00:13:05,320 51 just like a moving eighth note line low brass is chilling again then they come back 207 00:13:05,320 --> 00:13:10,720 up and they get to have another moment at 53 54 same little trills we don't want to 208 00:13:10,720 --> 00:13:16,820 overbalance them then everybody's accenting and getting softer leading into 57. 209 00:13:16,820 --> 00:13:21,820 So this part with the eighth notes in my experience with this the second clarinets are also doubling 210 00:13:21,820 --> 00:13:27,280 what's in the horn trumpet and alto tenor here and matching that articulation especially 211 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:32,560 from your reed instruments that was something we had to work on because it is a complete 212 00:13:32,560 --> 00:13:38,160 style change so a real firm articulation and making sure that you know the first trumpets 213 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:43,720 sound as good as the second clarinets down in a lower lower register of their instrument 214 00:13:43,720 --> 00:13:46,520 just being intentional about matching that articulation. 215 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:52,520 Yep I think that's important of course and then at 57 we get a new moment again now we 216 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:58,200 don't have the accent and style it's more lyrical again we have dropped out a lot of 217 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:04,680 the voices it's kind of like a woodwind choir here yeah but horn and euphonium play so the 218 00:14:04,680 --> 00:14:12,240 color instruments so the woodwinds clarinet one alto one have the melody tenor sax and 219 00:14:12,240 --> 00:14:17,640 horn have a tenor like a counter melody line and even most of the percussion has thinned 220 00:14:17,640 --> 00:14:23,920 out here too so the percussion doesn't play for two measures then they come in at a louder 221 00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:28,740 dynamic and then get softer then they don't play again and then they come in at a louder 222 00:14:28,740 --> 00:14:34,760 dynamic and then they get softer so it's kind of like an echo effect and they're leading 223 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:39,000 and helping the wind players above them because that's what the winds are doing is they're 224 00:14:39,000 --> 00:14:44,680 crescendoing up for two and then decrescendoing down for two these lyrical lines are really 225 00:14:44,680 --> 00:14:49,000 well written and the dynamics are written in for you for what you would want to hear 226 00:14:49,000 --> 00:14:54,400 and they're really important I mean it's important that the whole ensemble that's playing at 227 00:14:54,400 --> 00:15:00,480 this point buy into that phrasing lots of accidentals in this section so just making 228 00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:06,200 sure that your students are you know are comfortable with that exactly yeah or if they don't or 229 00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:12,000 they're not so comfortable marketing for them yeah there's big like alto sax moment here 230 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:16,960 where they go a little bit above the staff you want to bring that color out I think Mr. 231 00:15:16,960 --> 00:15:21,400 Beck wrote it that way intentionally for them to be a little featured they have a lot of 232 00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:28,400 the altos have a lot of C sharps sustained C sharps in this section so I would teach 233 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:33,520 them covered C sharp and have them use covered C sharp here for tuning to make sure that 234 00:15:33,520 --> 00:15:40,160 the tuning aligns with what's happening in the first clarinets yep and then we're getting 235 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:45,880 again the percussions kind of coming in and out here then percussion goes away for a while 236 00:15:45,880 --> 00:15:50,840 and so the band has to have really good pulse here they have to be watching you to stay 237 00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:56,800 totally together we still have the clarinet one and alto melody with horn and tenor having 238 00:15:56,800 --> 00:16:03,600 a counter melody and then euphonium also helping out with that we finish out this little thought 239 00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:09,600 at 72 and we kind of have a little bit of it's not a key change necessarily in this 240 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:13,920 section but it kind of sounds like it because of all the accidentals written in we have 241 00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:20,360 a final like arrival point chord at 72 and it can be very out of tune E natural in trombone 242 00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:27,560 G in trombone C in euphonium E natural in flute C sharp in sax so spending some time 243 00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:33,100 on that arrival point chord I think is really important and then we're kind of doing the 244 00:16:33,100 --> 00:16:39,100 same little lyrical again where for two measures we're leading up but now the whole band has 245 00:16:39,100 --> 00:16:45,760 joined back in like tuba berry sax all the lower voices are back in and then we have 246 00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:50,180 the same thing where percussions kind of out for two measures other than bells bells are 247 00:16:50,180 --> 00:16:59,280 playing along with the flute and then we get into measure 79 we have another arrival point 248 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:05,920 chord on C sharp and alto and C sharp and trumpet so just the like the tuning in this 249 00:17:05,920 --> 00:17:12,240 section is pretty it can be pretty scary if you don't spend some time on each chord there 250 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:20,120 are some when the melody part kind of arrives and it is at a cadence point on a longer valued 251 00:17:20,120 --> 00:17:25,780 note there are several instruments middle and lower voices that have a one and and three 252 00:17:25,780 --> 00:17:31,840 one and even though this is super lyrical those happen on the same note for each of 253 00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:35,960 those instruments and it's important that they articulate really clearly so that it 254 00:17:35,960 --> 00:17:42,560 doesn't sound money we made it like staccato accent staccato accent ta ta ta ta yes yeah 255 00:17:42,560 --> 00:17:47,320 so I think that that is a great point so that way you can actually hear that articulation 256 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:53,060 81 we're continuing with the melody in the upper people and then we crescendo up as a 257 00:17:53,060 --> 00:18:01,000 full group to 85 with that same one and and three and then the everybody that has accented 258 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:08,000 quarters here I taught them to play each one one dynamic level louder to lead into 87 one 259 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:15,120 two three one then we're back at the beginning one and one one and a two and three two three 260 00:18:15,120 --> 00:18:21,520 so it's the same as the beginning again same concept styles and then a whole new shift 261 00:18:21,520 --> 00:18:28,080 everybody on beat one plays forte and everybody in the whole band plays piano on beat two 262 00:18:28,080 --> 00:18:36,760 and then there's an achela rondo and a crescendo we spent a lot of time you you have 91 to 263 00:18:36,760 --> 00:18:41,840 95 because it's four measures where the whole band is getting faster and getting louder 264 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:47,680 and you have to practice getting louder at the same rate getting faster at the same rate 265 00:18:47,680 --> 00:18:51,880 so and it's the same note it's not they're not changing notes it's the same note over 266 00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:58,380 and over so you just have to teach the kids how to do it how to listen how to match their 267 00:18:58,380 --> 00:19:03,520 neighbors side to side don't get louder than your friend don't go faster than the conductor 268 00:19:03,520 --> 00:19:10,280 and you go into one here too so you have to conduct in three then eventually you're in 269 00:19:10,280 --> 00:19:15,880 your ride you're right now when we taught this like we isolated those two concepts because 270 00:19:15,880 --> 00:19:22,840 it's the same note we isolated the achela rondo and we isolated the dynamics so and to 271 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:27,880 teach it that way so like if you just like don't don't change the tempo and let them 272 00:19:27,880 --> 00:19:32,560 work on playing every note and just getting slightly louder together at the same rate 273 00:19:32,560 --> 00:19:37,160 while articulating the same the the same way as well what younger kids are going to want 274 00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:41,280 to do the louder they play the longer they're going to play right so keeping the style the 275 00:19:41,280 --> 00:19:48,280 same as they get louder then we isolated the achela rondo let's just do that we took it 276 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:53,320 away from the instrument and had them clap so that they were really focusing on just 277 00:19:53,320 --> 00:20:00,200 watching and and and doing that achela rondo together then putting it on the instrument 278 00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:04,600 I would say you know if it if it was any other piece you could do that on a concert F but 279 00:20:04,600 --> 00:20:08,360 it's the same note all the way through so I mean you don't need to do that once they 280 00:20:08,360 --> 00:20:12,880 are really secure with the clapping then you can mix those two things together put it together 281 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:17,760 add the dynamics add the achela rondo but these four measures I have heard these four 282 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:23,120 measures can seriously make or break some ensembles absolutely so it is so important 283 00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:27,800 don't put it off it's so important to work these four measures and make it a really solid 284 00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:34,600 transition otherwise when you land at 95 it can it can be a disaster and take four five 285 00:20:34,600 --> 00:20:41,280 six eight measures before the ensemble settles in yep so at 95 it's written prestissimo 286 00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:49,180 con fuego so it's in one at a hundred so one two three one two three one two three one 287 00:20:49,180 --> 00:20:58,380 two three it's and it's actually faster than that it goes really fast and my flute it's 288 00:20:58,380 --> 00:21:05,120 flutes only they struggled so much with clipping the third note like Laura's already mentioned 289 00:21:05,120 --> 00:21:11,560 a lot and also making the first note too short because it's written tongue tongue slur slur 290 00:21:11,560 --> 00:21:19,520 ta ta ta ta ta and it goes from a C to a D C C D E C E flat C C D E flat C C D E flat 291 00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:24,880 and so I know the like just the pinky and every it just like it's kind of a thing you 292 00:21:24,880 --> 00:21:29,080 got to work on like right away like make sure that your flutes feel really comfortable with 293 00:21:29,080 --> 00:21:35,640 this part it is fun they love it it's just something that they have to be really even 294 00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:42,320 ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta ta they have to be really really even clarinet and 295 00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:47,860 oboe come in along with bass clarinet as like a little response after four measures with 296 00:21:47,860 --> 00:21:53,880 tambourine as well it's a cute little color choice then they keep going with their melody 297 00:21:53,880 --> 00:21:59,780 with the clarinets and the altos coming in underneath them then at 109 all the woodwinds 298 00:21:59,780 --> 00:22:09,680 come in 1313131 they're gonna clip that quarter note oh my gosh it drives me nuts 13131 it 299 00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:15,160 has got and it's all a phrase so they come in strong just like the percussion did before 300 00:22:15,160 --> 00:22:19,480 where they came in at mezzo piano and they got to piano they come in at mezzo forte and 301 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:26,360 then get down to piano so teaching them that that is a that is a whole phrase and I taught 302 00:22:26,360 --> 00:22:32,120 that they were not going to breathe between 112 and 113 because now we have the same thing 303 00:22:32,120 --> 00:22:37,600 the opposite direction now they're going from piano to forte so it's a four measure decrescendo 304 00:22:37,600 --> 00:22:44,600 followed by a four measure crescendo and I taught that all as one thought which in one 305 00:22:44,600 --> 00:22:50,880 that's not right for them to do right so it what we did to help keep them from clipping 306 00:22:50,880 --> 00:22:56,960 that quarter note at the end of this section is I had them play a just a dotted half note 307 00:22:56,960 --> 00:23:06,040 so they played their first note as a dotted half note and didn't change da da da da da 308 00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:11,600 and we talked about using dotted half note air even though our fingers are going to be 309 00:23:11,600 --> 00:23:16,640 changing once we were sure that they could play the dotted half notes all the way through 310 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:21,920 and it felt you know connected and flowy we went back and added the extra quarter note 311 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:27,040 in there and kept the air the same the goal is that it sounds the same so that's a that's 312 00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:33,500 a little a trick that you can use to practice this section at 117 we have a final arrival 313 00:23:33,500 --> 00:23:38,420 point and and also I forgot to mention on those four measures where we're going from 314 00:23:38,420 --> 00:23:42,840 piano to forte the brass come back in there yes so the whole band sounds more full and 315 00:23:42,840 --> 00:23:48,000 strong and at 117 the whole all the upper woodwinds have the one two and three one two 316 00:23:48,000 --> 00:23:53,160 and three that the flutes had before and xylo adds in and that's a really cool color choice 317 00:23:53,160 --> 00:23:59,280 it is so work with your your percussionist to try to find the best mallet choice to make 318 00:23:59,280 --> 00:24:04,360 it sound like really really nice it should be a little bit of a harder mallet in my opinion 319 00:24:04,360 --> 00:24:08,880 yes I think it makes it sound more more awesome above the band and then we want to make sure 320 00:24:08,880 --> 00:24:12,720 all the woodwind players like I told them listen to the xylophone player yeah that's 321 00:24:12,720 --> 00:24:19,560 how your fingers need to be as as accurate as the xylophone yep then the brass have the 322 00:24:19,560 --> 00:24:24,600 little one two three one that the clarinets and saxes had before we're continuing this 323 00:24:24,600 --> 00:24:30,280 thought for quite a while then we go back into the little lyrical thing at 131 where 324 00:24:30,280 --> 00:24:35,440 we start strong get softer for four then get louder for four but now it's the full band 325 00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:40,560 instead of just the woodwinds and making sure that everybody again gets the same dynamic 326 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:45,200 level down and the same back up you don't have like one trombone trying to go for it 327 00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:49,800 and get louder than everybody else and the trombone speaking of is up above the staff 328 00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:55,320 here so tuning is also pretty important lots of accidentals in this moment just like we 329 00:24:55,320 --> 00:25:01,360 had before and then at 139 we have a cute little chromatic e thing we are forte and 330 00:25:01,360 --> 00:25:06,380 then all the little upper woodwinds are doing a chromatic scale down then at four measures 331 00:25:06,380 --> 00:25:11,800 later the brass get to have a little chromatic e thing going back up as they get louder the 332 00:25:11,800 --> 00:25:16,920 woodwinds are slurring down the brass are articulating up so just making sure that matches 333 00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:21,280 and then the next four measures the woodwinds again play this time it's not chromatic but 334 00:25:21,280 --> 00:25:27,600 they play staccato so it's like slurred to regular firm tongued to staccato and then 335 00:25:27,600 --> 00:25:34,240 the whole band has one and two one and one or sorry I was thinking one and because of 336 00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:40,160 being in one but you guys get it yeah it's a hemiola the whole band minus upper woodwinds 337 00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:46,120 accented strong you're gonna lead up to 155 then it's a big percussion moment chimes get 338 00:25:46,120 --> 00:25:52,640 the melody timpani has a whole really cool part I told my kid like go crazy town like 339 00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:56,680 it is so neat timpani and chimes I think are most important right here and then the full 340 00:25:56,680 --> 00:26:01,800 ensemble is playing one at just a quarter note on beat one and that the tendency is 341 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:07,040 to be way too short on that oh yeah making sure that it's a full body and resonant one 342 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:15,400 rest one rest and one then they have to come in like right before and then they come in 343 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:21,480 strong and the woodwinds lead us out with a chromatic line up to the last note and then 344 00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:25,480 the last note needs to also be long and full value the pick up note that eighth note pick 345 00:26:25,480 --> 00:26:32,920 up now I did it is it is fast and it has to be articulate ta ta ta ta all right that is 346 00:26:32,920 --> 00:26:37,600 something that we had to work on to make sure that it we aligned it correctly and that it 347 00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:41,520 was clear in the articulation and then last note just like we talked about the notes at 348 00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:45,560 one fifty five and one fifty seven make sure that that's full body resonant don't clip 349 00:26:45,560 --> 00:26:51,060 that note too short this piece is so much fun kids love it absolutely love it it's it's 350 00:26:51,060 --> 00:26:55,880 not too hard as an individual part like they're not going to look at it and be like I can't 351 00:26:55,880 --> 00:27:01,440 play this but it comes together well as long as all the kids know their individual parts 352 00:27:01,440 --> 00:27:06,840 and can watch really well because there's just there's a lot of activity there yes and 353 00:27:06,840 --> 00:27:10,240 the tempo is fine I think that's one of the things that they look at it and might see 354 00:27:10,240 --> 00:27:15,840 a lot of white notes on the page but the tempo really is what you know I think it makes the 355 00:27:15,840 --> 00:27:19,440 technique a little bit more challenging and a little bit more fun well we hope you will 356 00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:24,680 program la madre de los gatos sometime in the future and thank you for joining us on 357 00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:40,240 this episode of band BFFs.